Developmental growth, the remodelling and regeneration of adult tissues, as well as solid tumor growth, can only occur when accompanied by blood vessel formation. Angioblasts and hematopoietic precursor cells differentiate from the mesoderm and form the blood islands of the yolk sac and the primary vascular system of the embryo. The development of blood vessels from these early (in situ) differentiating endothelial cells is termed vasculogenesis. Major embryonic blood vessels are believed to arise via vasculogenesis, whereas the formation of the rest of the vascular tree is thought to occur as a result of vascular sprouting from pre-existing vessels, a process called angiogenesis, Risau, et al., Devel. Biol., 125:441-450 (1988).
Endothelial cells give rise to several types of functionally and morphologically distinct vessels. When organs differentiate and begin to perform their specific functions, the phenotypic heterogeneity of endothelial cells increases. Upon angiogenic stimulation, endothelial cells may re-enter the cell cycle, migrate, withdraw from the cell cycle and subsequently differentiate again to form new vessels that are functionally adapted to their tissue environment. Endothelial cells undergoing angiogenesis degrade the underlying basement membrane and migrate, forming capillary sprouts that project into the perivascular stroma. Ausprunk, et al., Microvasc. Rev., 14:51-65 (1977). Angiogenesis during tissue development and regeneration depends on the tightly controlled processes of endothelial cell proliferation, migration, differentiation, and survival. Dysfunction of the endothelial cell regulatory system is a key feature of many diseases. Most significantly, tumor growth and metastasis have been shown to be angiogenesis dependent. Folkman, et al., J. Biol. Chem., 267: 10931-10934 (1992).
Key signals regulating cell growth and differentiation are mediated by polypeptide growth factors and their transmembrane receptors, many of which are tyrosine kinases. Autophosphorylated peptides within the tyrosine kinase insert and carboxyl-terminal sequences of activated receptors are commonly recognized by kinase substrates involved in signal transduction for the readjustment of gene expression in responding cells. Several families of receptor tyrosine kinases have been characterized. Van der Geer, et al., Ann. Rev. Cell Biol., 10:251-337 (1994). The major growth factors and receptors transducing angiogenic stimuli are schematically shown in FIG. 1.
Fibroblast growth factors are also known to be involved in the regulation of angiogenesis. They have been shown to be mitogenic and chemotactic for cultured endothelial cells. Fibroblast growth factors also stimulate the production of proteases, such as collagenases and plasminogen activators, and induce tube formation by endothelial cells. Saksela, et al., Ann. Rev. Cell Biol., 4:93-126 (1988). There are two general classes of fibroblast growth factors, FGF-1 and FGF-2, both of which lack conventional signal peptides. Both types have an affinity for heparin and FGF-2 is bound to heparin sulfate proteoglycans in the subendothelial extracellular matrix from which it may be released after injury. Heparin potentiates the stimulation of endothelial cell proliferation by angiogenic FGFs, both by protecting against denaturation and degradation and dimerizing the FGFs. Cultured endothelial cells express the FGF-1 receptor but no significant levels of other high-affinity fibroblast growth factor receptors.
Among other ligands for receptor tyrosine kinases, the platelet derived growth factor, PDGF-BB, has been shown to be weakly angiogenic in the chick chorioallantoic membrane. Risau, et al., Growth Factors, 7:261-266 (1992). Transforming growth factor .alpha. (TGF.alpha.) is an angiogenic factor secreted by several tumor cell types and by macrophages. Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), the ligand of the c-met proto-oncogene-encoded receptor, also is strongly angiogenic.
Recent evidence shows that there are endothelial cell specific growth factors and receptors that may be primarily responsible for the stimulation of endothelial cell growth, differentiation and certain differentiated functions. The best studied of these is vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a member of the PDGF family. Vascular endothelial growth factor is a dimeric glycoprotein of disulfide-linked 23 kDa subunits. Other reported effects of VEGF include the mobilization of intracellular calcium, the induction of plasminogen activator and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 synthesis, stimulation of hexose transport in endothelial cells, and promotion of monocyte migration in vitro. Four VEGF isoforms, encoded by distinct mRNA splice variants, appear to be equally capable of stimulating mitogenesis in endothelial cells. However, each isoform has a different affinity for cell surface proteoglycans, which behave as low affinity receptors for VEGF. The 121 and 165 amino acid isoforms of VEGF are secreted in a soluble form, whereas the isoforms of 189 and 206 amino acid residues remain cell surface associated and have a strong affinity for heparin.
VEGF was originally purified from several sources on the basis of its mitogenic activity toward endothelial cells, and also by its ability to induce microvascular permeability, hence it is also called vascular permeability factor (VPF). VEGF produces signals through two receptor tyrosine kinases, VEGFR-1 (FLT-1) and VEGFR-2 (KDR/Flk-1), which are expressed specifically on endothelial cells. The VEGF-related placenta growth factor (PlGF) was recently shown to bind to VEGFR-1 with high affinity. PlGF was able to enhance the growth factor activity of VEGF, but it did not stimulate endothelial cells on its own. Naturally occurring VEGF/PlGF heterodimers were nearly as potent mitogens as VEGF homodimers for endothelial cells.
The pattern of VEGF expression suggests its involvement in the development and maintenance of the normal vascular system and in tumor angiogenesis. During murine development, the entire 7.5 day post-coital (p.c.) endoderm expresses VEGF and the ventricular neuroectoderm produces VEGF at the capillary ingrowth stage. See Breier, et al., Development, 114:521-523 (1992). On day two of quail development, the vascularized area of the yolk sac as well as the whole embryo show expression of VEGF. In addition, epithelial cells next to fenestrated endothelia in adult mice show persistent VEGF expression, suggesting a role in the maintenance of this specific endothelial phenotype and function.
Two high affinity receptors for VEGF have been characterized. These are VEGFR-1/Flt-1 (fms-like tyrosine kinase-1) and VEGFR-2/Kdr/Flk-1 (kinase insert domain containing receptor/fetal liver kinase-1). Those receptors are classified in the PDGF-receptor family, but they have seven rather than five immunoglobulin-like loops in their extracellular domain and they possess a longer kinase insert than normally observed in this family. The expression of VEGF receptors occurs mainly in vascular endothelial cells, although some may be present on monocytes and melanoma cells. Only endothelial cells have been reported to proliferate in response to VEGF, and endothelial cells from different sources show different responses. Thus, the signals mediated through VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 appear to be cell type specific.
The Flt4 receptor tyrosine kinase (VEGFR-3) is closely related in structure to the products of the VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 genes. Despite this similarity, the mature form of Flt4 differs from the VEGF receptors in that it is proteolytically cleaved in the extracellular domain into two disulfide-linked polypeptides. Pajusola et al., Cancer Res., 52:5738-5743 (1992). The 4.5 and 5.8 kb Flt4 mRNAs encode polypeptides which differ in their C-termini due to the use of alternative 3' exons. The VEGFs do not show specific binding to Flt4 or induce its autophosphorylation.
Expression of Flt4 appears to be more restricted than expression of VEGFR-1 or VEGFR-2. The expression of Flt4 first becomes detectable by in situ hybridization in the angioblasts of head mesenchyme, the cardinal vein, and extraembryonically in the allantois of 8.5 day p.c. mouse embryos. In 12.5 day p.c. embryos the Flt4 signal is observed in developing venous and presumptive lymphatic endothelia, but arterial endothelia appear negative. During later stages of development, Flt4 mRNA becomes restricted to developing lymphatic vessels. Only the lymphatic endothelia and some high endothelial venules express Flt4 mRNA in adult human tissues and increased expression occurs in lymphatic sinuses in metastatic lymph nodes and in lymphangioma. These results support the theory of the venous origin of lymphatic vessels.
Five endothelial cell specific receptor tyrosine kinases, Flt-1 (VEGFR-1), KDR/Flk-1 (VEGFR-2), Flt4, Tie and Tek/Tie-2 have so far been described, which possess the intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity essential for signal transduction. Targeted mutations inactivating Flt-1, Flk-1, Tie and Tek in mouse embryos have indicated their essential and specific roles in vasculogenesis and angiogenesis at the molecular level. VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 bind VEGF with high affinity (Kd 16 pM and 760 pM, respectively) and VEGFR-1 also binds the related placenta growth factor (PlGF; Kd about 200 pM), while the ligands for Tie, Tek, and Flt4 have not yet been reported.